A Perfect Christmas
by PfenixB
Summary: We really weren't going to do this...but it turned out all right in the end. Cid has good ideas...and bad ways of making those ideas work.


This one's for ani_mama, who wanted a holiday-themed valenwind :D We sort of overstepped "holiday" and went for "Christmas," because it was easier to be corny that way. Hope you all enjoy it^^

Calvi_sama wrote Vince, as always, and we both did a little of Shera, Reeve, and the children. Link to her LJ and this story on her LJ will be up as soon as I get them there.

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The rich smell of a cooking roast filled the small home, adding to the warmth of the environment and truly making things feel like a home rather than a dwelling and perpetual bachelor pad this holiday season. But that was about the only thing that was "normal." Vincent was a stressed-out mess. He glanced at the clock again as he checked the roast and began preparing the garlic mashed potatoes, and starting the water to boil macaroni. Why macaroni? Because Keely, Reeve and Shera's youngest, was in that phase during which macaroni and cheese was the only thing she'd eat. And speaking of…Vincent glanced again at the clock and cursed under his breath. Reeve, Shera and the kids would be here in less than an hour, and there was still no sign of Cid! They hadn't made it much past the meal-planning stage before Cid had taken off with the promise to "be right back", and truthfully, Vincent had been lucky to get the man's help in cleaning up the house at all! They had chosen a roast for dinner, and it was a good thing too, because that was the only dish he could cook without charring into the consistency of a hockey puck. He hadn't realized until right this moment just how lucky he was that Cid had strong (and talented) culinary tendencies! He pulled the oven open and saw that the roast looked good, turned down the water for the macaroni, then began preparing the green beans while he tried to keep his rising temper in check that was beginning to argue with a an equally rising panic that something had happened to his lover. There had been a recent string of vandalism and burglaries in the neighborhood, and while he didn't think anyone would be _stupid_ enough to do anything to their home, he was continuing to be amazed at peoples' ability to prove him wrong. _Cid, if you don't have a damned good reason for this, then you're not just sleeping on the couch, you're moving out to the shed!_ He grumbled to himself as he began setting out the rolls to slip into the top of the oven when the timer went off.

Cid felt bad leaving Vincent alone with the food –and the company- but he had things to get ready. The presents really should have been wrapped days ago, but planning had distracted him. They'd had to clean out the extra room over the space of a week after he had so brightly offered to let Reeve, Shera, and the two kids spend the holidays with them. Reeve had managed to get away for a few days, and he had expressed more than mild interest in being somewhere other than his own house. Cid winced as he remembered the brief tongue-lashing he'd received from Vincent after that conversation. He knew he had better pull this off if he didn't want another one. All the presents were wrapped and waiting fifteen minutes before the Tuestis were scheduled to arrive. Grinning, Cid stood and wiped his hands on his pants…and then realized that the nametags had yet to be filled out. The from part was easy; it was remembering which package went to whom that was difficult. The kids were young enough that they didn't so much care what they got as that they got a lot of it, so Cid just made sure there were an even number of the big packages for each of them. He did a fair job of remembering the shapes of the objects he'd wrapped and identifying the boxes that way. He came to the last four. Reeve's new jacket, the paint roller Cid had bought for himself, and…two boxes of identical size and shape. A necklace for Shera, and…oh. Cid grinned as he set aside the last one. That had to be delivered personally. The rest he tagged and placed carefully into the sack. Hodge met him at the door, eyes wide and panicky as he tried to scramble onto the porch. That look meant the kids had already begun "playin' wif the pretty kitty." "Nuh-uh, if we're havin' comp'ny, so're you," Cid scolded as he nudged the tormented cat back inside with his boot. "Anybody home?" he called, knowing the kids would come charging from any corner of the house to greet "Uncle Cid." Feeling a little sheepish, he headed to the kitchen to pay Vincent a visit while waiting to be pounced upon by Keely and Declan. Cautiously, he put his arms about Vincent's waist from behind, kissing his neck and whispering, "Took me a little longer'n I thought," before pulling away to greet Shera and Reeve enthusiastically.

Vincent snorted and bore the kiss politely, "Right," he murmured before grinning at Shera, "I certainly appreciate you helping me in here, Shera. I have no idea what I'm doing when it comes to cooking…let alone baking, and I apologize that I'm so behind with this. Cid, would you please see if anyone would like anything to drink?"

"Sure thing!" Cid complied, and gave a small internal wince. He really did need to learn to take care of things in a more time-appropriate manner. "Y'all know y'c'n all help yerselves," he told Reeve and Shera as first one kid and then the other crashed into him, Keely yelling as loudly as her three-(and-a-half)-year-old lungs would allow her. "But I'll be glad t'getcha somethin'," he continued, scooping up each child in turn and carrying them both back into the living room. "Y'all can't be yellin' in the kitchen now, y'hear? Vince's workin' hard in there an' y'don't wanna make 'im mess up. I'll be right back." He ducked back into the kitchen and poured drinks for their guests, including two Sippy cups full of juice for the younger ones. He returned to the couch and sat between the kids, handing Keely the red cup and Declan the blue one. "So," he said, propping his feet on the coffee table after checking behind him to make sure Vincent wasn't watching, "why don't y'all tell me what's been goin' on, huh?"

Declan looked up at Cid with wide brown eyes and said shyly, "Daddy's home."

Keely was the more talkative and energetic of the two, and Cid was a bit taken aback by the fact that she hadn't spoken first. "He sure is," Cid agreed, wishing Reeve could somehow have his days extended by a few hours so he could spend more time with his family. "Whatchall think Santa's gonna bring ya?"

At that, Declan's eyes filled with tears. "Nothin'," he pouted.

Alarmed and hoping to stop the could-be tantrum before it started, Cid asked, "Whatcha mean nothin'? Y'all're good kids."

"Not home," he answered simply, and Cid understood and ruffled Declan's hair.

"Now, don't go thinkin' he's gonna fergetcha. He knows where y'are. I wrote to 'im an' told 'im y'all was gonna be here so he c'd make sure y'got all yer presents same time as ever'body else. Promise."

Keely's eyes lit up as she said, "_We_ wrote too, me an' bubby."

"That so?" Cid asked, but before anyone could answer him, Reeve stepped out of the kitchen to announce dinner.

------

As Cid shepherded the kids into the living room, and Shera eased the pecan pie into the oven and took out the roast, Vincent tossed the towel he was wiping his wet hands on over his shoulder and pulled out a bottle of merlot. "So Reeve," Vincent asked as he popped the cork to pour the wine, and handed his "adult" guests each a modest glass before taking one himself, "How's work? I haven't heard from you lately."

Reeve accepted his glass and leaned back against the counter top, Shera settling against him with her own and sighed, shaking his head, "Busy, too busy, my friend. It's keeping me away from home and that bothers me, and I know it's hard on Shera and the kids, but I just cannot find enough people to whom I would trust the work!"

Shera smiled sadly up at her husband while Vincent took a sip of his wine, "Really? Even after all of this time?"

"Yes," Reeve said, slumping a little, "The WRO is struggling and Rufus is threatening to pull his funding if I don't hire more ex-ShinRa employees, just as we're beginning to make real progress! And that's just the beginning. Ordinarily I wouldn't hesitate to hire back all those poor souls who lost their jobs after Meteor, but the ones that I have hired back have all been corrupt! I'm at a loss."

"Hn,' Vincent grunted, "Sounds to me like Rufus is hand-feeding you 'employees.' I'm sure you are aware of this already, as it sounds like it, but it seems to me that he's trying to worm his way back into power by once again using others. Have you had a visit from any of the Turks yet?"

Reeve nodded, has arm going around Shera's waist and he kissed her head before murmuring, "I have. Tseng came to me about two weeks ago."

Vincent's eyes grew sharp as he pulled the towel off his shoulder to set it back down on the counter, "What did he tell you?"

"He was very polite and said in about as many words, 'I strongly advise you listen to Mr. ShinRa.' He wasn't inappropriate at all, and even seemed to be quite sympathetic." Reeve replied, brows furrowing.

"Yes, well Tseng is a master of deception second only to 'Mr. ShinRa'. There is a reason he's the Director. I should know, having held the position once myself." Vincent crossed his arm over his belly to prop his other elbow upon it and took another sip of his wine, frowning. "Reeve, you must be very careful. The fact that he sent Tseng to you tells me he's only a short move away from trying to strong-arm you into something. He's not above using force, my friend, even with those whom he calls his 'allies'."

Shera's delicate hand flew to her mouth and her face paled as she looked up at Reeve's face. "Honey, are you in danger?"

Reeve tightened his hold on her and looked to Vincent for the answer.

"Yes," Vincent replied softly. "The more desperate Rufus is for power, despite his pretty words to the contrary, the more violent he will become. So it has been throughout time and bloodline."

Shera gave a small sob and had to set her wine glass down her hand was shaking so badly. Reeve kissed her forehead. "Hush, my dear. We'll be all right."

Vincent's frown deepened in thought as he considered and chose his words carefully. He never liked to get involved in business that was not his own, but Reeve, Shera, and the kids were the closest thing he had to family next to Cid, and he didn't want to see the gentle but ambitious man get hurt. "Reeve. You need your own team around you, loyal only to you with the same training, knowledge and skill-sets as Rufus' Turks. You need to send a message to Rufus that his advances are not welcome, and that you are not going anywhere, nor are you backing down. It's ultimately a dirty turf-war, but until Rufus gets it in his head that there is a new governing body, he will not give up."

"Reeve…" Shera whispered, burying her head in her husband's chest.

"But how, Vincent? I don't know the first thing about setting up anything like that!" Reeve replied desperately.

Vincent sighed and closed his eyes as the words on the tip of his tongue came spilling out: "I do. I would screen applicants and oversee training as well as assign and tend to 'special' jobs." He opened his eyes and met Reeve's levelly. "I would be willing to develop and assemble a team for you; hand-pick them, train them and get you started, teach you what you have to know. We'd be working quite closely for several years, I fear." He snorted and took another sip of his wine, stating wryly, "I'm not easy to get along with and I have precise and exacting standards, they'd be nothing but the best. Just ask Cid…I'm a beast to live with. Just wait until you have to work with me."

Reeve just gaped at Vincent, his eyes shimmering suspiciously, but it was Shera who let out small cry and flung herself into Vincent's arms. "Oh, Vincent! Would you really do that?"

"I don't know what to say, Vincent," Reeve said hoarsely. He cleared his throat, "I would never have asked you…never imposed like that…"

Vincent held up the hand holding the wine glass, cutting off Reeve's words, while the other went around Shera to rub her back soothingly. "What am I supposed to do, Reeve?" he asked softly. "Watch as one of my only friends slowly gets destroyed by ruthless and violent men, when I have the resources to keep that from happening? It's a temporary position; I do want you to know that. But I will not leave you without a strong and unshakable foundation from which to work."

Reeve held out his hand, which Vincent firmly clasped after first setting down his wine glass, while Shera tightened her hold. "Thank you, my friend. I could never repay this debt."

"You already have," Vincent replied. "You, Shera and the kids are my family…it's more than a man like me could have ever hoped for."

"We love you, Vincent," Shera said, pulling away and looking up at his face. The tears on her cheeks glittering like tiny diamonds. "Even if you had never volunteered to do this, we still love you."

Reeve nodded and came over to put his hand on Vincent's shoulder and said, meeting his eyes, "No, Vincent, I think you have it wrong. A man like you is more than this family could have hoped for."

Blushing, Vincent broke eye contact first and cleared his throat while Shera finally stepped out of his arms. "Yes, well…we'll just have to agree to disagree, won't we?"

Reeve tossed his head back as he laughed merrily. "I have a feeling we'll be doing that a lot in the future, my friend. Now, how about I call everyone to dinner?"

As the three of them exited the modest kitchen, each carrying a couple of dishes, Cid corralled the children and got them seated between Reeve and himself. Vincent returned for the wine, refilled their glasses, and brought them back out (with a full glass of fresh-brewed tea for Cid) before seating himself last, next to Cid. They talked easily, only occasionally having to remind the children to not play with their food, while Vincent surreptitiously placed his hand on Cid's thigh. The food was consumed with many compliments to the chef, which Vincent took much quiet pride in, and Cid insisted he clean up since he had bailed on the prepping and told Vincent, Reeve and Shera to go into the living room to relax.

Vincent stood and asked, "Reeve, I have some very nice port, would you like some? Shera?"

"Yes, I believe that would be very welcome, Vincent, thank you," Reeve replied, rubbing his full stomach.

"Oh, just coffee for me, if you have it, please," Shera said, placing her hand on Keely's head where she stood hugging her mother's leg and watching Vincent out of enormous eyes.

"Of course," Vincent said, smiling, and followed Cid into the kitchen while Reeve and Shera retreated into the sitting room.

He came up behind Cid and wrapped his arms around the pilot, leaning his chin on Cid's shoulder. "I'm sorry about my behavior earlier, Cid. I was stressed and bit upset. How about I make it up to you later?" He kissed Cid's neck and rubbed his hands slowly over Cid's abdomen and lower to the man's thighs before pulling away to retrieve the port after Cid's growl of approval. He uncorked it, carefully poured the rich, aromatic wine then re-corked it, poured Shera a cup of coffee from the already brewed pot and joined their company in the living room. Reeve and Shera accepted their drinks where they sat, curled up together on the couch, and Vincent took a seat in his reading chair, propping his feet up on the ottoman.

He had just taken a sip of his port when Keely came up to his chair holding up a doll right in his face. "Lookit, Uncle Vinny!"

Vincent blinked quickly and carefully wrapped his fingers around Keely's tiny wrist to hold the doll back from his face so he could focus on it. "Well, she's beautiful, Keely," he said with a slow grin, "What's her name?"

"Aerith!" Keely said proudly with a wide smile.

Vincent's smile slowly faded away, and he could see Reeve and Shera tense slightly out of the corner of his eye. He looked seriously into Keely's wide brown eyes. "She is beautiful, sweetheart."

"She wants t'give you a kiss!" Keely said, and before he could say or do anything she held the doll's face up to his cheek and made a 'kissing' sound. "Now _you_ have t'give 'er one back!"

Very gently, he cradled the doll's head in his head and placed a kiss to the forehead, "Thank you, Aerith, and it's nice to meet you."

Keely squealed and giggled then clambered up onto his lap, only narrowly avoiding knocking his port and spilling it all over everything. With a startled "Oof," he held up the glass until Keely got settled, curled up around "Aerith" and against his chest. One small hand found a chunk of his hair, which she proceeded to twist around in her fingers while she sucked her thumb. "I lub you Unca Vinny," she said around her thumb, and he felt his throat constrict.

"I love you too, baby," he whispered, and kissed the top of her curly-haired head as he raised his knees to better cradle her and wrapped his free arm around her fragile little body, "I love you very, very much."

When Keely let out a contented little sigh, he looked up and caught Reeve and Shera both watching them, Reeve with a wide, proud smile and Shera with her hand over her mouth and tears on her cheeks again, but judging by the expression he could see, she was smiling. He grinned hesitantly. "Well, I do," he said simply, then kissed the top of Keely's head again.

Declan had decided to "help" Cid in the kitchen, handing him the used dishes one by one as Cid washed them and set them aside to be rinsed. When the table was clear, he dragged a stool over to the sink and dried the rinsed dishes as Cid passed them to him.

_This kid's a real trip_, he thought, grinning. Keely was everyone's favorite, no contest, but Cid loved them both. "So whatcha gonna do when ya grow up, huh?"

"Gonna be like Daddy," he answered quietly, face glowing with pride and a twinge of embarrassment. "Gonna marry Mommy an' be real important."

"That so? Well, good fer you! Me, I didn't know what I was gonna do 'til I was already doin' it."

Declan _liked_ Uncle Cid and Uncle Vinny, but they sure were weird. Unable to keep up with Cid's chattering, he sighed heavily and stepped down from the stool, leaving a bemused Cid to wonder what he had done wrong as he dried the rest of the dishes. Keely was in Uncle Vinny's lap, but Declan liked Mommy better anyway. He settled himself quickly and determinedly between Shera and Reeve, laying his head against Shera's shoulder as she began stroking his hair.

"Getting tired, hon?"

"Mm-hm. But I need my toofbrush first."

"I know. Ten more minutes, okay? You too, Keely," she called to the toddler in Vincent's lap, who was already dozing.

Cid emerged triumphant from the kitchen in just enough time to kiss the children goodnight before Shera carted them off to get ready for bed. He, too, was made to kiss "Aerith" by Keely, who was constantly rubbing her eyes to stay awake. That left the three men in the living room until Shera was done tucking in the kids and reading their story. Cid normally took care of that when they were here, but he wasn't complaining. He relaxed into his chair and kicked off his socks. "That was real good, Vince. Just thought y'oughta hear it again."

Vincent nodded, "Thank you, Cid. I had a good teacher, although that is about the extent of my culinary abilities right there." He turned to Reeve and winked. "You should be here when Cid gets into one of his 'creative' moods. More times than not he turns out some fairly outstanding dishes."

Reeve laughed and held up his port, "I just may sometime. We'll have to have 'guy's nights' now that we'll be working together again, Vincent, in lieu of 'happy hours'!"

Cid raised an amused eyebrow. "What's this?"

Vincent nodded and raised in own glass in response to Reeve's statement, surprised at actually looking forward to working with the commissioner again. "I've agreed to work with Reeve to set up a 'department' much like Rufus's Turks, Cid. Tseng's been to visit Reeve in regards to Rufus's 'influence' with the WRO and it concerns me. Plus it would give Reeve a chance to spend more time with his family."

Grinning, Cid replied, "Well, there ya go! Ya got us both workin' for ya now, eh, Reeve? S'good, though, Vince," he continued, sipping his tea. "M'glad y're willin' t'help out. Tell th'truth, I didn't even think o' that, much less askin' you about it. Y'done hired yerself a good man, Tuesti." Sighing and allowing the chair back to recline, Cid closed his eyes. He would have to slip out soon somehow. Cid had really wanted to wait until everyone in the house was sleeping, but the adults were too glad to be together for that to be a realistic goal, he thought. "An' th'time that gets ya, y'can't put a price on that," he finished contentedly, a warm smile on his lips.

Reeve nodded, but it was Shera who answered as she came back into the sitting room, "No, you can't. And he's lucky that you both are working _with_ him." She settled again into her husband's arms, "We're so very blessed that you two are in our lives, you don't how much that means to us."

"Yes," Reeve agreed, squeezing his wife and raising his glass in salute, "To old friends and new futures! May they be full of luck, fortune and happiness!"

Vincent and Cid raised their glasses in acknowledgement and comfortable silence ensued.

A few minutes later, Cid decided he would have to go now if he wanted to make it back before falling asleep. "Say, I got somethin'a take care of. Be right back," he said, grinning sheepishly at Vincent upon remembering that those were his exact words earlier in the day when he had 'disappeared.' "Promise," he emphasized, bending down to kiss Vincent's cheek as he left. First stop was the shed. It was too cold outside to strip, so he pulled on the thick red-and-white suit over his clothes. The pants were so puffy that they did not take kindly to being stuffed into his boots, but he managed it after nearly ten minutes and much awkward stumbling. The final addition was the white facial hair; itchy, annoying, vision-obscuring pieces of junk those were. Standing proudly in front of the mirror they had moved to the shed after it had broken, he let out a pleased, "Heh," before shouldering the sack of gifts and placing the one set aside in his pocket. He debated the best way to "sneak" into the house and wished he had checked to make sure the children were really asleep, though there was not much doubt. Finally deciding to just try the back door –he might be able to enter and leave unnoticed if Vincent were properly occupied- Cid left the shed and made for the house, finding that this suit was quite unpleasant to walk in.

Vincent only raised an eyebrow at Cid's excusing himself from their company. He was full, warm, and quite content and stress-free now that dinner had been successfully pulled off, so the only thing he felt was mild curiosity. He gave a little smile as Cid kissed his cheek and after the front door was shut, the other eyebrow rose at Shera's little giggle. "Something strike you as funny, Shera?" he asked.

Shera waved her hand, "Oh, it's nothing! Only that you two are so cute!"

Vincent snorted and blushed, but said nothing. Reeve laughed and Shera continued, "I know I've said it before, but you're good for him, Vincent. He's really changed since you've come into his life. It's like you've given him…" she paused, chewing on the inside of her cheek in thought, "…a purpose again!"

"Well, I aim to please," Vincent mumbled, looking down into his port as he slowly twirled the glass in his fingers.

"Vincent, I hate to bring this up now, but I can't relax not knowing a plan." Reeve said, changing the subject and sparing Vincent any more embarrassment.

"It's all right, Reeve," Vincent said, latching onto the subject change with welcome. "Go ahead."

"When are we going to implement your idea for a new 'department'? Will it be soon?" Reeve asked sipping his port.

Vincent nodded, "Effective immediately. The quicker we establish a presence the better. I think perhaps I might pay Rufus an 'unofficial' visit and make a few discreet inquiries after his interests. I think we ought to keep our plans low profile for the time being to keep Rufus from going on the offensive. It will be enough for him to process just knowing that I'm working with you again. He'll probably back off and send some Turks to…do…some…Shera? Are you all right?" Vincent had grown alert upon seeing Shera's suddenly pale face and wide, frightened eyes.

"I-I think I just saw movement." She pointed out the far window. "Out there, just past those bushes!"

Setting his port down, Vincent acted purely upon reflex. He leapt to his feet, placing himself in front of the Tuestis, and stared out the window, narrowing his eyes. Yes! There was movement. Turning and keeping himself between the threat and his friends he said calmly, "I think perhaps it might be best if you went in with the children. Please stay calm and pull the curtains. Do not turn on the lights. I'll take care of this." He held out his arm as Reeve and Shera put down their drinks and retreated into the children's bedroom quietly. "Don't wake them, and lock this door until I come for you all right?"

At Reeve's sober nod, Vincent remained by the door until he heard the 'snick' of the lock being put into place before moving silently into his and Cid's bedroom. Opening the closet door, he reached up onto the top shelf and retrieved Cerberus (placed there so a curious child would not happen upon it), checked to make sure it was loaded before slipping out the back door in stealthy pursuit of their unwelcome guest.

Cid continued tromping through the frost-covered grass until he was several feet away from the house, nearly face-to-face with a familiar sight. Vincent was walking in a direction some yards to the right of Cid, Cerberus drawn and face dangerous. Was something wrong? Cid ducked behind a clump of bushes and looked around for some sign of anything that would draw Vincent outside like this. He almost laughed in relief when he realized that _he_ was probably the threat. Now to figure out how to get around him… Cid knew there was no way he could reach the back door with Vincent guarding it, and making a break for the front would be risky. He certainly did not want to be shot, so the reasonable thing, of course, would be to break his cover and explain the operation to Vincent. But…he had started this, and he intended to see it through. Taking a deep, quiet breath, Cid secured his grip on the bag and dashed for the house, noting the ladder he had forgotten to put away after stringing the lights earlier that week.

Breath coming in white clouds around his face, Vincent didn't even feel the cold as he examined the ground around him. He gradually made his sweeps larger until he finally picked up a set of prints. Frowning and glaring murderous intent at the prints of the person who was threatening his friends, he followed the prints until he came to a ladder and the disturbed snow that indicated his quarry had made it onto the roof. He jerked his head up when he caught sight of someone…going down the chimney? With a grunt, he turned around and ran back inside to stand at the fireplace, intending to ambush the intruder as he crawled out onto the hearth.

Cid had tossed the gifts onto the roof before attempting to climb the ladder, knowing he would have enough trouble without the bag. Once there, he grabbed it again and made for the chimney, tossing it down quickly before jumping in. He winced as he heard the sound of packages hitting the floor and hoped that the gratuitous amounts of wrapping paper on them kept the objects inside them from breaking. Nothing was especially fragile, but some of the toys for the kids might not function properly if damaged. He went down smoothly at first, but near what he was sure was the exit to the hearth, Cid made contact with a box that was apparently too large to go down and was wedged firmly in the chimney. "Dammit," he grumbled, trying to force it down without putting too much pressure on it. After a few moments of denial, he called timidly, "Vin?"

Vincent had jumped back in surprise when a bag of…_presents?…_had hit the hearth. His eyes narrowed in suspicion as he trained his sharpened hearing onto the various boxes, listening for the telltale clicking or beeping of an explosive device, when from the dark depths of the chimney came a mournful and familiar voice. "Cid?" he asked, dumbfounded, laying Cerberus carefully on the coffee table and getting on his hands and knees to peer up into the dark hole of a chimney, "That was _you_? What on _Gaia_ are you doing up there?"

"Well, I was gonna come in the goddamn door like a normal person, but somebody was out there gonna shoot me if I tried it," he grumped, not really upset. He was glad that Vincent had been prepared to protect their guests, not that he had ever doubted it. "An' I didn't wanna make too much noise an' wake up th'kids, so I didn't wanna run 'round t'the front an' have ya shoot after me." He fidgeted, beginning to feel a little concern about being trapped here. "Better question is how th'hell am I gonna outta here? I don't like this, Vince, not at _all_."

Vincent was torn between being touched and seriously amused. The latter won out and he began to chuckle, which gave way to full-blown laughter as Cid whined down at him again. "All right, all right, just a moment. Let me get a flashlight." He went into the kitchen and rummaged around in the utility drawer until he found the small flashlight they kept there for emergencies. Returning to the fireplace, he pulled the sack of gifts out of the way and stuck his head back into the chimney, shining the flashlight ahead of him. "Hn, it looks like this box is what is holding you up. Let me see if I can…get the corners…to bend in a little." With his enhanced strength, he managed to get the box to contort just enough to pop free, and he only barely made it out of the way before Cid came crashing down to land with a painful thud on the brickwork of the hearth.

"Ow! Shit," Cid complained, standing and, predictably, also bonking his head on the mantle as he worked his way into the center of the room. "Thanks," he muttered to Vincent, pride wounded and plan decimated. Looking around at the presents scattered near the fireplace, Cid sighed and set to gathering them together, sparing the still-chuckling Vincent one fake insulted glance. "C'mon an' help me set these up, huh?" he suggested, patting Vincent's backside lightly with the box he was currently transporting.

Grinning from ear to ear, Vincent began to gather gifts to place under the tree with those that Cid had collected. "Tch," he snorted as he noticed the black on his shirt. "You're covered with soot! How about you go take a shower. I'll change, and then let Shera and Reeve out of the kids' bedroom." Then he got a good look at the costume his lover wore and he leapt into Cid's arms. As the startled pilot caught him, Vincent planted a firm kiss to Cid's fake-mustached and bearded face and purred, "I've been a good boy this year, Santa…do I get to ask for a gift?"

"Mmm," Cid hummed, pressing Vincent tightly to him while murmuring, "Th'hell're you talkin' about? You ain't been good. Y'll be lucky t'get a lump o' coal in yer…shit, we fergot stockin's! Dammit…" Cid pulled away sighing. "Reckon there's a store still open?" he asked morosely.

"Awww," Vincent said, chuckling, "my poor pilot, you've tried so hard." He wrapped his arms around Cid and held onto him strongly before pulling away and shaking his head. "Not this late, Cid, I'm sorry. But I think I might have a little something…" He grabbed Cid's hand and pulled him into their bedroom. At his closet he opened the door and there, lying on the floor where two large red and white and red and green stockings, stuffed to overflowing with candy and small trinkets for Declan and Keely. At Cid's startled face Vincent wrapped his arms around his sooty lover again and said, "When you forgot stockings last year, I thought I might have a backup ready in case it happened again this year."

"Guess y've been good after all," Cid conceded, playing at reluctance. He put his arms around Vincent, prepared to hold him for a long while, before remembering that Reeve and Shera were probably beginning to worry. He sighed again. "Guess I oughta shower an' let you change, huh? Hey, y'know what? If Reeve an' Sher're comin' back out, we c'd start ourselves a fire. After y'make sure there ain't nothin' still in there," he grumbled, releasing Vincent after stealing another kiss. "Yep, y're gonna hafta wash yer face too, y'know."

Vincent laughed. "I figured as much." He went into his closet and retrieved a comfortable pair of soft pants and a silk shirt, then followed Cid into the bathroom. While Cid started the shower and climbed in, he quickly washed his face, hands and arms, then stripped and put on his fresh clothes before retreating back into their room, dumping the soiled garments into the hamper and retrieving a change for Cid. He returned to the bathroom, laid the clothes on the sink counter then shut the door behind him. Knocking lightly on the children's bedroom door he said, "It's safe; it was only Cid." As the door cracked open, Vincent grinned at Reeve and Shera's worried faces, "Come back into the living room and I'll explain what happened." As the Tuestis sat back down on the couch, and he did a quick check of the chimney, he told them about Cid's great plan. They were chuckling by the time he finished, and had lit a warm and cheerful fire just as Cid rejoined them.

Vincent was just returning to his chair as Cid entered the room. As Cid stretched and plopped onto the floor at Vincent's feet, Shera asked him, "Why go through all the trouble instead of just leaving presents marked that way?"

Grinning, Cid replied, "Well, I figure at least one of 'em might wake up, an' if they did…well, I didn't wanna ruin it for 'em. Figure if they saw their Santa, they'd go on believin'. Make things a little easier on y'all, huh?" He laughed and shook his head. "Guess if either of 'em did wake up, they ain't gonna ferget seein' their Uncle Vinny tryin'a shoot Santa Claus." He chuckled again and rested his head against Vincent's knee, eyes closing in contentment.

Watching Reeve snuggling with Shera on the couch, Vincent suddenly felt lonely. Gently he nudged Cid to lean up, rose from his chair and, port in hand, walked around the room turning off all the lights until the only illumination in the room was the fire. He met Reeve's gaze, grinning as the commissioner winked at him, then he grabbed a few of the floor pillows and plopped them down closer to the fire. Jerking his head at Cid, he settled against them, leaning against Cid's recliner, which was closer to the fire than his own. Cid's lips quirked as he got up, toed Vincent's leg, and settled behind Vincent to allow the gunman to lean back against his chest. Sighing happily, Vincent lowered his eyelids and watched the dancing flames.

Cid wrapped his arms around Vincent, holding him loosely as they absorbed the warmth from the fire. He settled more comfortably into the blockade behind him so his head could be closer to Vincent's. "I tell ya t'day how much I love ya?" he mumbled, one hand reaching up to run through Vincent's hair.

"No," Vincent murmured, "not today." He snuggled back into Cid's broad warmth, staring into the hypnotically smoldering coals. "It's so beautiful, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Cid agreed, "sure is." He felt bad for ignoring their company, but he was sure Reeve and Shera could manage without their undivided attention. That said, Cid could feel his own eyelids dropping, and he had to keep himself awake somehow. Vincent would not appreciate him falling asleep. So, to occupy himself, he kissed the top of Vincent's head. "Next year you get t'do it. How's that?"

Vincent chuckled. "Get dressed in a hideous Santa outfit and get stuck in the chimney…I don't think so. Not when you look so fetching in a fake white beard. Besides, my eyes would give me away, not to mention scare the children," he ended softly; grin growing even wider as he heard soft murmurs and giggles from the couch interspersed with sounds that suspiciously resembled those of kissing. _And she says _we're_ cute_, Vincent thought as he turned his face in towards Cid's to better enjoy the pilot's clean scent of soap and shampoo instead of his usual cigarettes and engine oil. He placed his hand on Cid's thigh and rubbed slowly, thinking that the world couldn't _get_ more perfect than this.

Cid let out a pleased hum and covered Vincent's hand with his. "Better not," he said in a low voice. "We got comp'ny an' y'know how bad I am at controllin' m'self." Although, now that he thought of it, no one was watching them, and Reeve and Shera were taking no great pains to keep themselves quiet. "Screw it," he whispered, grinning as he let Vincent go back to rubbing his leg. At the same time, he slid his own hand into Vincent's shirt, warming it with the heat from Vincent's body.

Vincent shivered at Cid's cool hand on his flesh, his breath catching in his throat, which caused him to gently drag his nails up Cid's thigh and grip firmly while he squirmed a little. "I love it when you touch me," he breathed, forehead against Cid's temple. "But do you know what I love more?"

"What's that?" Cid asked, barely keeping himself from making a cheeky remark. He kissed Vincent's cheek; he had barely to move to accomplish it.

Vincent turned a little in Cid's arms and murmured, "When you kiss me."

Cid shifted and turned his head to look at Vincent. Even from this angle, the fire lit up his face and reflected vaguely in his eyes. He leaned in and pressed his lips to Vincent's. "Like that?" he asked. "Or didja mean more like this?" he teased, moving in again to kiss him more fully, working his tongue into Vincent's mouth.

Hand coming up to Cid's face reflexively upon the probing kiss, Vincent hummed his approval, "More like that I should think. Again…" and that was the end of small talk as Cid brought his mouth back to Vincent's. Gradually the two eased down onto the floor with Cid lying partially on top of him. While their lips were otherwise occupied, their hands quickly found each others' bodies, or more to the point, _Cid's_ hands found Vincent's chest and flanks, belly, and lower, cupping Vincent's crotch and rubbing, causing the gunman to give a soft moan and press up into the contact while gripping Cid's strong shoulders. Vincent's hands smoothed down Cid's arms then came up to fist briefly into Cid's spiky hair as he delved deeper with his tongue, wrapping one long leg around Cid's as the pilot began to rub his own, now quite obvious, erection against Vincent's thigh. With an answering moan of his own, Cid tugged at the button of Vincent's pants, popping the fabric open to slide his hand down inside to wrap his fingers around Vincent's cock. This caused Vincent to gasp and pull away from Cid's mouth. Panting, he grabbed Cid's wrist and pulled the blond's hand out of his pants with a lusty whisper, "I think it's time we went to bed, don't you?" Without giving Cid a chance to respond he wriggled out from under the pilot and stood up. Blushing, he looked down at Reeve and Shera who, upon seeing his movement, jumped apart looking guilty. "Uh," he stammered, "please…remain here as long as you like and help yourself to anything. Our home is your home." When Cid came up behind him, wrapping his arms around his waist and nibbling on his neck, it was all he could do to keep his voice from shaking, "I think, uh…we're going to go to bed." At Reeve and Shera's knowing grins, his blushed deepened and he ended up dragging Cid to bedroom, so focused the man was on his neck. When he got into their room and shut the door, Cid pressed hard up against him, welding their mouths together again.

"Damn," Cid panted when they next pulled apart. "That whatcha meant when y'said y'd make it up to me later? Tell y'a secret: I wasn't never upset with ya." Vincent's shirt came off, quickly followed by Cid's, and Cid walked them to the bed only to pause, grinning. "Hang on. Almost fergot. Since y'been_ such_ a good boy an' all that, y'get t'open one early," he said, pulling from the drawer on the nightstand the gift he had transferred from his pocket after showering earlier. "Not that one yet," he laughed, pulling Vincent's hand away from his crotch with great reluctance. "This one first, an' then we'll see 'bout that one." He handed the box to Vincent, who looked at him skeptically. "Well, go on. While you're doin' that…I think I'll open mine," Cid said, grinning again as he sank onto the bed and undid Vincent's pants again, this time pushing them to the floor.

"Hghn," Vincent grunted when the cooler air hit his heated flesh and the drop of moisture that wept from the tip of his cock to run down his shaft. With great effort, he ignored Cid's attention to his erection and its resultant twitches, and opened the small box. Blinking in surprise, he looked down at Cid and said, "Cid, it's…uh…lovely, but I don't wear necklaces and if I did, it wouldn't be a sapphire-studded heart…"

Cid stopped and sat straight up, a look of shock on his face. "Tell me y're kiddin'." Vincent shook his head and showed the box and its contents to Cid, who mumbled, "Oh, musta got 'em mixed up," covered his face, and collapsed backwards onto the bed. "Fuck, I can't let Shera open that!" he nearly yelled, sitting bolt upright again and staring, panicked, at Vincent, who seemed to be losing yet another battle with laughter at Cid's expense.

Vincent couldn't help it; Cid just looked adorable when he had that expression on his face. Scrunching out of his pants, he pushed Cid back onto the bed and straddled the pilot's hips. "Now what would be in the other box that you seem so determined not to let Shera open, hm?" he laughed, pressing his groin down onto Cid's.

"Nothin'," Cid said quietly, looking away as his face began heating up. He would snatch the gift back early tomorrow morning and re-wrap the necklace, no harm done. He grinned and looked back up at Vincent. "Guess y'll find out later, wontcha? Fer now…come 'ere." Cid pulled Vincent down to him and kissed him once more before rolling onto him in much the same position they had shared before leaving the fire. "Now, where was I?" he asked, sliding his hand down Vincent's body again.

"I suppose I shall," Vincent murmured, curiosity piqued at the thought of what might be making Cid actually _blush_. But Cid's roaming hands quite successfully diverted his attention, and he purred, "Oh, if memory serves, you were right about…" he grabbed Cid's hand and guided it to wrap around his now-freed erection "…_here_." Cid grinned and slowly began pumping his cock as the blond lowered his lips once again to Vincent's, proving that it was going to be a _very_ merry Christmas indeed.

* * *

Look, I didn't cut anything out this time! Merry Christmas.


End file.
